Dizzy

A bit of sad news to share. Rocky Lockridge died today from complications suffered after a stroke. He had been in hospice care in the days prior to his passing.

His son’s statement:

“It is with great pain but a whole heart that I tell you family and friends that my father Ricky Lockridge aka Rocky Lockridge has passed away. All he wanted was to be in the comfort of his home with friends/ family. God has called him to walk through the gates of heaven.”

Rest in Peace, Rocky. And condolences to his family, who we know loved him like crazy.

Ok the math isn’t perfect here because many addicts are in multiple categories, but I think it’s interesting that there are 24 addiction categories that have been shown on Intervention but alcoholism is represented in 28% of the episodes.

Also interesting:

Only 2 people have been addicted to cocaine (not crack) by itself. 85% of the cocaine category are people who were addicted to something else as well, most frequently heroin.

No one was addicted to Benzos (i.e. Xanax) only. Every Benzo addict was also addicted to at least one other drug.

Now that I’ve completed my spreadsheet repository of basic information about each episode, I’m starting a new section for statistics about the show. If you have any suggestions let me know. Here’s the first one (US eps only):

Hey if you haven’t been paying attention to the comments here, a friend of Intervention has a YouTube channel with a TON of Intervention episodes, including several that aren’t available anywhere else. Get on over there! https://www.youtube.com/user/Ramoin/videos

I have no idea what’s going on with this season, I just wanted to update you on some sad Intervention news.

Vanessa from Season 1 was shot by police after aiming a BB gun at the officers during a routine welfare check. The incident made national news, you can read more about it here.

Joe from Season 8 died after suffering from an infection that led to a convulsive episode in the hospital, which resulted in a brain injury that he succumbed to. It’s unclear how his addiction was related to his death, but his father’s very sad Facebook post suggests that his history with heroin and self-asphyxiation had taken its toll on his health.

Betsy from Season 2 apparently passed away in early August. I do not know details about the cause of death, but with help from Stefan we have pieced together bits of information that appear to confirm that she died. If anyone out there has more information and can more definitively verify, I would appreciate any information. Here is her obituary. It’s been confirmed that she died of breast cancer. Here is a different obit with more information.

The absolute worst part of doing this website is finding out that the people that I related to, cried with, and rooted for have lost their lives. I know that the fans of the show who read this site feel these deaths the same way. Intervention asks us to emotionally invest in their lives, to care about them and hope and pray that they thrive in sobriety. And we do, sometimes passionately. When we find out that sobriety didn’t take or that their health was so compromised by the addiction or mental illness that they didn’t survive, it’s hard to take. I never want to add another person to this horrible and tragic list. It’s too long as it is. Way, way too long. Take care of yourselves my friends, I will do the same.

(Guest Post by Stefan) What’s Memorable: This episode illustrated the concept of Patriarchal Blessing in the Mormon Church, which was something I was unfamiliar with. It was a breath of fresh air to have such a religious family be as supportive/understanding of an addicted family member as Jenny’s was (it’s something I feel like isn’t so common on this show). Also, her shooting up and nodding off while giving a haircut was disturbing.

Official Synopsis: Jenny, 32, is a talented hairstylist from a close-knit Mormon family. When a diagnosis of endometriosis crushes her dreams of having a family, she turns to prescription drugs. Her addiction quickly escalates to IV heroin and meth use.

(Guest Post by Stefan) What’s Memorable: Until I saw this episode, I did not realize how severe the condition could become, to the point of literal hospitalization/institutionalization. Also, the fact that he wouldn’t touch his children and grandchildren out of fear of “contaminating” them is heartbreaking.

Update: Mike passed away on September 7, 2010. The cause of death was not made public.

Official Synopsis: Mike, 67, was a police sergeant, avid outdoorsman and respected citizen. After he was injured while apprehending an addict, signs of Mike’s obsessive-compulsive disorder started to emerge. His fear of germs caused him to wash his hands over 40 times a day. The problem forced him to retire early and his wife divorced him. He was able to keep his OCD under control for eight years, but a relapse caused him to think his food was spoiled and almost starve. Mike’s children feel an intervention is their only hope of helping him.

(Guest Post by Stefan) What’s Memorable: No other episode of the series has touched on agoraphobia. Also, the fact that she had no family present at the intervention, only friends (Annie, the bulimic dancer from Season 2, is the only other person profiled in the show’s history who can claim this).

Update: Vanessa Marquez was shot and killed by police during a welfare check on August 30, 2018. She was reportedly brandishing a BB gun when she was shot. Here is the news story about the tragic incident.

Official Synopsis: Vanessa, who was a recurring character on the long-running medical drama ER, is addicted to shopping. She is heading towards bankruptcy.

What’s Memorable: This family has suffered through almost an epidemic of suicide and you can tell that it’s really affected them. They’ve all lived with so much pain and having to deal with Jade’s addiction and suicidal behaviors is just too much, I really felt for them all. I hope that Jade is able to stay on the right path, they need her around. Also, the more I see of Jesse’s interventions the more I like his style. He makes the family confront their contributions in a unique and I think effective way.

Note: This was obviously produced as an Intervention Canada episode but I can’t find any record of it ever airing in Canada on Slice or Documentary channel. So it’s a US-CA hybrid I guess. Like Justin Bieber!

Official Synopsis: Adorable and fearless, Jade had an ideal childhood, two loving parents and a passion for horses that led her to competitive show jumping. Jade’s world came crashing down around her when, at 10, her father’s increasing depression led to her parents’ divorce and her father’s attempted suicide. Left on her own while her father fell deeper into depression and her mother attempted to rebuild her life, Jade felt abandoned and turned to drugs and alcohol for comfort. Now, at 24, Jade has a severe addiction to prescription opioids and cocaine and suffers from intense suicidal ideations. She has overdosed three times in the past year. Her family are desperately afraid that she will not see her next birthday without a successful intervention.

What’s Memorable: I think what I’ll remember most is her saying “This isn’t the person I want to be” right before agreeing to treatment. You could tell it was a powerful moment for her.

Official Synopsis: At the age of 22, Shiann has already faced a lifetime of pain. The shocking death of her sister, a diagnosis of A.S., a progressive and debilitating disease, and an unexpected divorce, sent this once vivacious fitness model and bodybuilder down a path of meth-fueled binges. With no help in sight, her family fears losing another loved one to an early death.